A disc road bike from the greatest men’s road racer to ever live? Not in a month of Sundays in Hell did we expect that. But Merckx overhauled its eponymous road line earlier this year, and the fully modern series includes some of the more interesting road disc models we’ve seen, like the Mourenx69. The frame’s engineering and industrial design are clearly derived from the EMX 525 we tested and loved, but Merckx gives it a taller head tube and shorter top tube for a more upright position, plus Shimano hydraulic disc brakes and thru axle wheel attachments front and rear.

Italian heritage? Check. Impressively light and efficient carbon fiber frame? Check. Eleven-speed Shimano Ultegra parts kit with hydraulic disc brakes? Check and check. This is the disc-brake version of the excellent GTR Team SL we tested in the print Buyer’s Guide, and it’s every bit as great a bike. It’s packed with modern technology, down to up-to-date standards like flat-mount brake calipers and thru axle wheel attachments, but still has that classic Italian design flair, all at a “is that a misprint” price.

You can expect to see the GF01 raced this year in rugged Northern Classics like Paris-Roubaix, where its comfortable ride and extra tire clearance make it an excellent bike for tackling mud and cobblestone roads. Closer to home, it’s ideal for any adventurous ramble, with a taller head tube for a more upright position, a broadly geared compact drivetrain, and an almost maintenance-free Shimano Di2 shifting system, an upgrade from the mechanical version we tested last year.

Do-it-all road bikes have existed as long as road bikes have, but when Specialized introduced the Roubaix line over a decade ago, it rewrote the idea that a bike couldn’t be simultaneously tech-forward, performance-oriented, AND comfortable enough for all-day adventures. The Roubaix SL4 Elite Disc furthers that ideal, adding hydraulic SRAM Rival disc brakes to a 22-speed drivetrain with such a massive range (a 34/32 is the lowest gear) that you’ll be able to spin up any wall and then confidently descend the other side. The SL4 carbon frame and fork get Zertz vibration-damping inserts, and the slightly more upright position balances efficiency against comfort.

The Liv Avail takes all the technology from Giant’s Defy men’s bikes and packages it in a womens-specific package: geometry, parts, even the layup on the Advanced-grade carbon composite frame. With a full 11-speed Shimano Ultegra groupset with hydraulic disc brakes and Giant’s SLR carbon clincher wheels, The Avail is ready for just about anything from fast group rides to extended off-pavement adventures.

Some riders think that disc-brake road bikes aren't meant for serious racing. The UCI's decision to allow disc-equipped bikes in all races should help change that, but you can find examples closer than the WorldTour. Take Norco’s Tactic SL Disc, which pairs a 1050-gram (claimed) carbon frame with direct-mount hydraulic disc brakes and 12mm through-axle wheel attachments and a Shimano Ultegra drivetrain for a stiff, confident ride with better braking than you’ll find on any rim-brake bike.

The price floor for road bikes with hydraulic discs seems right around $2,300 these days, but if you are willing to skip a carbon frame you can get even cheaper. Example: The Century 2 from Diamondback, which has a solid spec sheet with Shimano Ultegra derailleurs, non-series Shimano hydraulic disc brakes and Hed’s Flanders C2+ rims, all bolted to a custom-butted 7005-series aluminum frame. It’s a great entry for disc road, especially with 28mm Michelin tires to further soften the ride.

A storied Italian brand that got into the weeds for a bit, Masi is making a steady comeback, and one of its most eye-catching bikes might help you on your own detours—the adventurous kind, of course. The Vivo Tre strikes us as a fantastic value, with a full Shimano 105 group with hydraulic discs mounted to a fully modern carbon frame with a BB86 bottom bracket, flat-mount brake calipers, and thru axle wheel attachments. Nice extras include tubeless-ready wheels and Clement Strada LGG tires in a bump-smoothing 28mm width.

GT’s new line of Grade bikes are genre-defiers, none more so than the Grade Alloy X here. Start with the externally routed cables, which fly in the face of the current internal-routing vogue but which make for a much more easily serviceable bike. The smoothly tapering fork legs are an outlier at a time when chunky looks dominate. And the bike’s capabilities, which thanks to generous tire clearance span just about anything you can think of, refuse easy categorization. The Grade Alloy X is the kind of bike we love because it’s not a particular kind of bike; it’s just a bike.

If the name Lynskey sounds familiar, it’s because the family was behind the hot-hot-hot Litespeed brand of the original 90s titanium craze. They’re still around, building titanium frames in the US under their own name and selling them online. The Sportive Disc is a stellar example of what we love about their bikes: It’s a versatile all-around road bike that combines titanium’s comfort and timelessness with practical touches like rack and fender eyelets. Plus, you get to kit the frame out however you like, with a range of group, wheelset, and parts choices that start at $2,950 complete. There’s even a 45-day tryout period; ride it like you want to and, if you’re unsatisfied, return or exchange it.

England’s Charge is doing just that into the US market, and with fun, reasonably priced bikes like the Plug 4 it’s no surprise why. The Plug isn’t a typical road bike; it started life as a fixed-gear, but Charge expanded the range to geared bikes. But where other brands step timidly into wider tires, Charge barges forward with 42mm (that’s right) Maxxis Roamer skinwalls that provide a smooth ride on anything short of a full-on mountain bike trail. A broad-ranging 11-speed Shimano 105 drivetrain is paired to Render cable-activated disc brakes, and the 6061 aluminum frame gets rack and fender mounts. The Plug 4 isn’t a speedy racer, but it makes that up and more in versatility. Our only gripe: The sizing is skimpy and skewed to medium-height and taller folks.

Yes, Salsa makes road bikes. The fat bike and mountain bike-centric brand actually makes several road bikes and all of them fit the same quirky, zig-when-others-zag approach to bikes that Salsa loves. Start with a 4130 cro-moly frame, durable and dependable with the ride that steel aficionados rave about, updated with thru axle wheel attachments and a carbon fork. Then add a 10-speed SRAM Apex group with BB7 cable-activated disc brakes, Schwalbe Durano 28mm tires (with clearance for more), and a fetching paint job, all under two grand. The Colossal isn’t a ride for those who follow the pack, but if you go your own way, it’s a ready and able companion.

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